A Tale of Two Brothers
by hmmga
Summary: Life for Primo and Nico has always seemed simple. Go to Hogwarts, be sorted into Slytherin, get good results, and marry a nice, respectable pureblood girl. But as the boys turn eleven, Primo's dreams are dashed, and Nico begins to discover his rebellious streak…
1. Chapter 1

**I found this tucked away on my computer system. I wrote it a little while ago, then forgot about it. There are about four chapters at the moment, but I will probably continue it when I have time. The writing is slightly immature, and it is very fast paced, but I thought it was a sweet story, so I may as well publish it!**

**The Code:**

Primo/Jame's POV

_Nico's POV_

**1. The Valente Boys**

My name was Primo Valente. On the first of June I turned eleven, and my life changed forever.

Until then my life had been straightforward. Father was the head of the household, and his word was law. My twin, and my sister and I accepted all that he and mother told us about Slytherin, mudbloods, and the importance of tradition. We were a small family. I had no cousins, and my grandparents had died long before I was born. Our parent's lives weren't particularly affected by the second war against Voldemort. They had been too young for the Dark Lord to consider recruiting them, and my grandparents had already been too old. I think I had an Uncle who was in Azkaban for his part in the war, but we never talked about him.

In our parent's eyes, we were perfect. We were clever, well behaved, and carried ourselves like kings. My brother and I were identical down to the last curl of dark hair, and we had the dark eyes and slightly olive skin that marked us out as Valente boys. We were spoiled rotten, to the point where we both became rather arrogant; and looked upon other people with a slight sneer on our face. This did nothing but make her parents happier, which resulted in more treats. It was a negative spiral, and we were trapped in it, though we did not know it. From an early age, it was clear that I was the favourite. Nico and I were twins, but I was the first born, and the heir to the Valente fortune. What I hadn't realised at that tender age was that I was being trained and prepared for a future as the head of the family.

Along with my twin I had a younger sister, Diana, and she was adorable. She too had olive skin and dark hair, but her eyes were a bright piercing blue. Her eyes always disconcerted me. We had little contact to the world beyond our little family bubble, and I had never seen any like them. She was three years younger, but had a very active imagination, and was the leader in many of our games. Her games were a lifesaver in the eleven long years we spent growing up in the house.

We awaited our eleventh birthday with impatience; we couldn't wait to go to Hogwarts.

There was a sharp tap on the door, and the sound of father answering it. My sister had roped me into a high-spirited game involving an escaped hippogriff. We didn't hear father call our mother's name, or the solemn conversation that took place. We had no idea anything serious was happening until our house-elf appeared at the door.

"Mistress is saying, could the young master please go down into the living room. There is a… important matter to discuss."

I nodded. "Alright I'm coming. What's up?"

"I does not know, but mistress is very upset."

There were three people in the lounge. My parents; and a strange man I did not recognise. He wore a smart muggle suit underneath his wizard's cloak, and had a formal, ministry of magic look to him. Mother had her face buried in a handkerchief. Father was staring at me, with something like accusation in his eyes. In a moment of terror, I realised it was shame. My father was ashamed of me.

"Ah, you must be Primo," he said, smiling warmly. He held out his hand, and I shook it.

"How do you do?"

"My name is Albert Jenkins. I work for Hogwarts, in the administration department." He paused, and there was an awkward silence. I am sorry to inform you that we cannot offer you a place."

My mouth dropped open as his words sunk in.

"But I must have a place! My name has been down since I was born!"

"That is correct, but I am afraid we cannot accept you. You have no magical ability."

"But I do have magic! I have loads of magic!"

He shook his head. "No, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

_Primo charged out the living room, his face streaming with tears. _

"_Primo? What's the matter?"_

"_Piss off Nico!" he yelled, and he shoved me aside on the way up to his room. I heard the front door open and close, and I ran downstairs. Mother and father were sat on the sofa like statues._

"_What is it? What's happened?"_

_Father took a breath, bracing himself. "Your brother's a squib."_

_I could do nothing but gape. My brother a squib? That was impossible! Valente's all had powerful magic! That's what they told us! That was the first time I ever doubted my parent's values._

"_What's going to happen to him?"_

_He'll go to a muggle school," said father, screwing up his nose in distaste. "It's all decided."_

_Then he stretched out his arm, and handed me my Hogwarts letter._

_Over the next few days everything changed completely. Primo stayed in his room most of the time, and I couldn't say I blamed him. If looks could kill, he would have been six feet under by now. I made an effort to avoid our parents too, but for other reasons. They had all of a sudden started being incredibly nice to me. They hadn't exactly been cruel before, but they had paid more attention to Primo. It was only now that I began to realise how much Primo must have suffered under our parents, and I pitied him. I was faced with endless lectures on blood purity and family honour. They made it clear that I was the number one son now, and I despised them for it. They were just going to abandon Primo to the muggles. It was only a series of new laws that prevented them from dumping him in an orphanage. I began to see my parents for what they really were, pureblood fanatics. During every lecture, every 'quiet chat' with father in his study, I tuned out, plotting my revenge. When I went to Hogwarts, I was determined to show up the whole family._

_I didn't want to be a Slytherin anymore._

In July, Mr Jenkins came to take me to buy my uniform. He arrived at ten in the morning, and looked me up and down.

"You cannot go out like that," he informed me solemnly. "We are going into the muggle world, put these on," he handed me some clothes. "Jeans, and a t-shirt."

I did as he asked, and then he handed me something else he called a 'jacket'. Once I was deemed muggle enough, we left the house onto the streets of London.

"I know you are used to floo powder," he said, "but today we will be travelling the muggle way."

He led me down a moving staircase, and I suddenly found myself in a crowd of muggles. There were muggles in suits, families of muggles, and younger muggles dressed like I was. As I hurried to keep up with Mr Jenkins, (the jeans were a little small) I saw another muggle standing to the side playing music on a strange-looking instrument. I waited impatiently as Mr Jenkins bought us tickets.

Muggles had trains underground. I could do nothing but stare. My parents had been wrong. Muggles were geniuses. As we took some seats, Mr Jenkins attempted to explain muggle money.

"Let's start with coins," he said, holding up a small brown one. "This is a penny, it's made of copper, and this slightly bigger one is worth two pennies. This little silver one is worth five pennies, and this one is worth twenty."

"That's an odd shape," I commented.

"Yes, and this even odder shape is worth fifty pence. Now, this gold one is worth a pound."

"A pound?"

"That's right, now there are a hundred pennies in a pound, which is easy enough to remember, and this gold and silver coin is worth two pounds."

"Right… and those little pieces of paper?"

He carried on whispering to me when the train pulled up at a station. We walked off, and made our way back to the surface. We were in a completely different part of London, and we were surrounded by muggle shops. Mr Jenkins led me through the crowd to a quiet shop down a clean side street.

"Park House," he said to the assistant. She nodded, and directed them to a corner where another girl was standing with her parents. A small boy was running around, obviously bored.

"Hello," said the girl. Are you going to Park House too?"

I nodded.

"My name's Fiona Dursley," she said, holding out a hand.

"James Valente,"

My parents had decided to give me a new name for the muggle world. Before the girl could talk again, however, there was a loud bang, and a rack of clothes came crashing down.

"Christopher!" cried the adults.

"I think I'd better take him out, dear," said the woman. The man nodded, and she dragged the boy out.

"Sorry about my brother," said Fiona. "He's very annoying sometimes."

"Brothers are annoying," I agreed. A plump, middle aged saleswoman waddled over, clapping her hands together.

"Park House?"

We nodded.

"Excellent, now if you would like to come with me…"

She led us into the back of the shop, where there were several cubicles. There were already a few other students trying on various uniforms, but they all looked older. I was handed several items to try on.

The muggle school uniform was the strangest thing I've ever worn. It reminded me a little of dress robes, but more restricting. First there were smart grey trousers, a shirt, and shiny shoes. This was fine. Then there was the tie and jumper. There were fine too, even if the tie felt like it was strangling me. But then there was the jacket and hat. It was a special type of jacket that Mr Jenkins called a 'blazer', and apparently the hat was called a 'cap'. I had never seen anything like them, and I found them awkward and irritating. _Then_ I was handed the regulation satchel, and shoved in front of a mirror. I looked ridiculous.

"Very nice," said Fiona's posh, precise voice. I turned to see her outfit. It was exactly the same, except she was wearing what the woman had called a 'pinafore', and her hat was round and brimmed, with a red ribbon around it.

"You look great," I said. It was the truth. She wore the uniform easily and naturally. It was obvious she was used to it. She frowned

"It's nicer than my old one, I had to wear _tartan_."

I laughed weakly with her. I wondered what tartan was.

The list was endless. Along with the uniform I had to buy a regulation wooden trunk, flannel blue pyjamas, a blue and grey 'sports kit', and several textbooks, with strange titles such as 'An Introduction to Algebra'.

"Is that everything?" I asked, exhausted.

"Not quite," said Mr Jenkins with a grim smile, "but it is time to leave."

"See you at school!" said Fiona with a bright smile. I waved half-heartedly at her as we left the shop.

_Primo sat on his bed, surrounded by piles of stuff. As well as the items on the school kit list, Mr Jenkins had bought pens and pencils, a whole range of muggle clothes, and some wizarding books about the muggle world. My brother was flicking through them thoughtfully, already wearing his new clothes._

"_It's strange," he blurted out suddenly. "Mother always goes on about how muggles are dirty, stupid creatures, but the ones I met weren't like that at all." He looked up at me seriously. If I hadn't known better, I would have said he had a tear in his eye. "You knew, didn't you, that they were lying to us."_

_I nodded._

"_I could see it in your eyes. You were always so defiant, but you never let them see."_

"_They didn't care what I did. As long as they had you to impose their beliefs on, I could think what I liked. But now…"_

"_I'm sorry I'm putting all this pressure onto you."_

"_Don't apologise. I fully intend to show them up."_

_He looked up sharply. "Do you mean that? Do you really believe you can shame our parents?"_

"_It will be easy. It's just a matter of sweet-talking the sorting hat…"_

_Primo laughed, elated. "Let's just hope you don't chicken out before tomorrow night."_

"_Would I do such a thing? I'm glad you think so much of me!" I replied, pretending to be offended._

"_No, I don't think you will," he said softly. "I think you would make a good Ravenclaw."_

"_Ravenclaw? I think I can be a bit more drastic than that! Watch out Gryffindor, here comes Nico!"_

"_Personally, I think you would make a better Hufflepuff."_

"_Dream on, Primo, as if I would sink that low."_


	2. Chapter 2

**2. New Schools**

I woke up that morning to a loud crashing and banging on the landing. I leapt out of bed in a panicky confusion before I remembered. It was Nico preparing to leave. I was going to miss him. I crawled back into bed, pulling the pillow over my head. My parents had made it expressly clear that I was not allowed to go to King's Cross to see him off. They couldn't stand the shame of admitting I existed. I groaned and sat up again, and then I caught a glimpse of my chest of draws, and had a sudden flash of inspiration. I ran across the room, and began rummaging frantically, searching…

Ten minutes later I was ready. On my shopping day, Mr Jenkins had bought me something he called a dungarees. It was bright red and childish. When I had tried it on, even the saleswoman had burst out laughing, saying I looked about six.

Today six was exactly right. I fluffed my hair haphazardly, and practised a few cheeky grins. Then I went downstairs to face my parents.

"_What in the name of Merlin's Pants are you wearing?" _screeched my mother. "I told you, you're not coming with us!"

"But mummy!" I protested with wide eyes. "I wanna go see Nico off to school! Pretty please?"

Mother seemed taken aback by my childish speech. "What _are _you playing at?" she hissed. "Who do you think you are?"

"My name is James, and I wanna go see my big brother go to big school." I replied sweetly. "I can come, can't I?"

After a few minutes she had no choice but to give in.

I did my very best to be childish all the way to the station. I chattered with Diana non-stop in the taxi, refusing to sit still. I scampered ahead through the muggles, and then looped back around. I felt like I was releasing eleven years of pent-up energy. It was marvellous.

"Behave yourself!" hissed father, pushing Nico's trolley. I relented, and walked slowly by his side, a child rebuked.

A few yards ahead of us, two other children were trailing behind their family. The black-haired boy was in deep discussion with his red-headed sister. The two adults ahead of them could only be their parents. They had another boy between them, another red-head, and the father was pushing a trolley with a brand new trunk and owl cage. On his other side walked another youth with a trolley, only this boy was older than the others, as tall as the father, and his trunk was worn and battered. He had bright blue hair. I tried to keep watching them, but after a few minutes they vanished from sight.

"Here we are," announced father stiffly. "Just walk through the wall." He took Diana's hand, and pulled her through a brick wall.

"Come along, Nico," said mother coolly, herding him through the wall. I followed at a run, wincing as I passed through the wall. I emerged on the other side still running, and collided into a dark figure.

"Watch it!" said a voice. It was the young red-headed girl from earlier.

"S-sorry," I stuttered, momentarily mesmerised by her deep brown eyes. She gave me a contemptuous look, and flounced away after her family.

My parents found an empty compartment, and stowed Nico's trunk away. He lifted his owl inside carefully, then hopped back onto the platform to say goodbye.

"Have a good term, Nico," said Mother sternly. "Make us proud."

"Work hard," instructed our father. "Behave yourself, and live up to the family name. My good friend Nott has a son in Slytherin, and he's been told to look out for you. Good luck."

"Yes, father."

He turned away from the adults to me and Diana. There was nothing I could do to stop the tears spilling down my cheeks.

"Look more dignified, boy, for Merlin's sake! Don't you dare show us up here!"

I ignored him, and pulled Nico into a hug. "Good luck," I said nervously. "Make me proud, I'm depending on you."

Through the crowd, a whistle blew. Nico hugged Bianca quickly, and clambered back onto the train.

"I'll write to you!" he yelled to me, waving madly out the window. "See you at Christmas!"

I waved back, running alongside the train until the end of the platform, and it disappeared around the corner. I turned back to catch sight of our parent's thunderous expressions. There would be hell to pay tonight.

_An hour or so after the lunch trolley, a boy appeared at the door. He had messy red hair, hazel eyes, and lots of freckles._

"_Hi," he said. "Can I sit here?"_

"_Of course," I said. "Are you a first year as well?"_

_He nodded. "My name's James, James Potter."_

"_Nico Valente."_

"_Nice to meet you. Are you a muggle-born?"_

"_A what?"_

"_Do you have non-magic parents?"_

"_No, but I know what you mean. My parents call them mudbloods."_

_James stiffened "That's not a nice word."_

"_I didn't think so. They always screwed up their face when they said it."_

"_Dad says only Slytherins use the word mudblood."_

"_My parents want me to be in Slytherin," I said gloomily._

"_Really?" gaped James. "But you seem… nice."_

"_What house do you want to be in?"_

"_Gryffindor, like my family. I have six cousins at Hogwarts already, and they're all in Gryffindor. Teddy is too, but we're not actually related. He's my God brother."_

_The compartment door clattered open. James groaned. _

"_Speak of the devils…"_

"_Hey Jamie," said the smallest boy. "We wondered where you had slithered off to. Very snake like, they're going to love you."_

"_Leave off Fred," snarled James. "These are my cousins." He said to me._

"_You've all got the same hair," I observed. They burst out laughing._

"_It's a Weasley thing," explained the other boy. "I'm Louis," he said, holding out his hand. "This is my sister Dominique, and our cousins, Molly and Fred."_

"_Where are Teddy and Victiore?"_

"_Patrolling," said Dominique with a small smile. Lucy giggled._

_The Weasleys settled down, and the rest of the journey flew by._

"_When I call your name," said Professor Vector, "I want you to come forward, and place the sorting hat on your head. Abbot, Amy!"_

_The names trickled by. Valente would be right down the bottom of the register, so I would be waiting a while. He watched a trembling James be sorted into Gryffindor. Eventually, it was time._

"_Valente, Nico!"_

"_GRYFFINDOR!"_

_The hat had barely touched my head._

The driveway was full of people as I dragged my case up to the school. It was a similar atmosphere to platform nine and three quarters, as parents said goodbye to their children. But here there was no steam, no sparks of odd magic, and no mewling of strange pets. Just the steady rumble of engines and conversation. The school itself was beautiful, an enormous old stone house in the middle of the Devon countryside. It just seemed… boring.

"James! Over here!"

I whipped around to find Fiona waving madly at me. I scrambled past a group of older girls to greet her.

"Hello!" I cried. "It's good to see you!"

"You too! You remember my parents?"

I nodded at them, and waved to Christopher, who was looking rather tearful.

"Next year, I'll be coming too!" he said proudly, wiping his eyes.

"Daddy, we need to go and sign in," said Fiona. "Can you help me with my suitcase?"

He nodded. "Where are your parents, James? You need to sign in."

"They're not here."

"I see. Well, give us a minute, and you can come with us."

"Is your name James?" asked Christopher.

"Yes,"

He took my sleeve, and dragged me away from the others.

"Will you look after Fiona for me?"

"I- I guess…"

"It's 'cos I'm not here until next year, you see, so she's got no-one to look after her."

"I see, of course I'll look after her."

He nodded seriously. "Thank you James."

"This is the year seven common room," said the prefect leading the crowd of students.

"It's nice," said a girl.

"It's your home from home, the girls dormitory is on the left, through that door there, and the boy's dormitory is opposite on the right. Rule number one, DO NOT go into the wrong dorm. Rule number two, this door here," he tapped the entrance to the common room, "this is what we call the pyjama line. You are not allowed beyond this point without being fully dressed, _except_ in an emergency." He paused, looking around at the younger kids. "I think that's everything. Dinner is at six. Now's your time to unpack, get to know each other, et cetera. Etgay ettledsay inay. And _that_, boys and girls, is pig Latin for _get settled in_. If you don't know pig Latin, you'd better learn quickly, as it's the main jargon around here. Right, I have to go now, but the prefects will be coming up to check on you later. I may see you then!"

And with that he nodded to us, and strode out. Gentle chatter broke out among the students as they began to pull their cases toward the dormitories. I waved as Fiona passed me in the opposite direction and she smiled, her green eyes shining.

The dormitory was neat, but also rather bare. Ten beds were arranged in rows around the room, each with its own wardrobe, chest of drawers, mirror and locker. There was a little plaque on each locker, telling everyone who it belonged to. My bed was at the very end, next to the window. I had a stunning view of the country side.

"Hello!" called the boy with the bed opposite. He spoke like the rest of them, very precisely like he was weighing every word. "My name's Lysander Boxall."

"Hello… um-"

"Can James Valente please come to the headmaster's office? James Valente?"

"That's me!" I called, scurrying to the prefect. He curled his nose up at me, and then turned on his heel, indicating that I should follow. I hurried after him, but he didn't come to a stop until we reached the door labelled 'headmaster'. He knocked. A voice called, "Enter", and the prefect pushed me inside.

"Ah," said a calm looking man with iron grey hair. "You must be Mr Valente. Sit down and meet the others. This is Amelia Abbot, a year nine, and Peter Lawrence, a year thirteen. They are both in your situation. My name is Mr Prewett, and many moons ago, I experienced the same thing. We are all squibs, and we are here to help.

"…_and _then_ he snuck up behind me in the library, but before he could hex me, he tripped up over his shoes, the daft tosser. Went flying into a bookcase, taking my ink bottle with him. He ended up with a month's detention. And the _best _bit was, I managed to jinx him in the corridor afterwards."_

_James and I laughed. Fred shot his sister a disapproving look, but a smile was tugging at his lips. Before he could speak, however, they were joined by a tiny boy with messy blond hair. He glared at them from bleary blue eyes, and then pulled some toast towards him. Roxanne opened her mouth to say hello. James only just managed to stop her in time._

"_Wait until he's had his breakfast," he whispered. A week had been more than enough time for them to realise that Alfie Clegg was not a morning person._

"_Morning all," said another voice._

"_Hi Teddy," I said, grinning up at the head boy. He winked at me, and then his hair turned an annoyed brown as he turned to Roxanne._

"_Professor Longbottom wants to see you," he said seriously. "Something about a Slytherin named Jenks, and some leeks."_

_She sighed dramatically. "And I thought I'd got away with it. Ah well, see you guys in hell."_

_She slunk away from the breakfast table, giving them a half-hearted wave. Teddy's hair changed back to his usual cheery turquoise._

"_Actually, Nico, I wanted a word with you too."_

"_It wasn't me," I said quickly, wondering how he could possibly know about the dungbombs I'd planted in a Slytherin's pockets. Teddy frowned._

"_I don't even want to ask what you're talking about, but I would like a talk with you anyway," he stood up._

"_Of course," I said, scrambling off the bench to join him. "See you in Transfiguration, James."_

_I followed Teddy out the hall, just as Victoire flitted past with her boyfriend. Teddy's hair turned a jealous green as he led me into the small chamber off the entrance hall. He placed a hand on my shoulder in a big-brotherly attitude._

"_Are you alright, Nico?"_

"_Yeah," I said. "I'm fine."_

_He considered me carefully; his warm brown eyes studying me. "I heard you received another howler."_

_I nodded, my howlers were famous within Hogwarts. They mainly entailed my father yelling that I had betrayed the family's honour, and warning me to stay away from the 'mudbloods and blood traitors' that I would encounter in Gryffindor. Mother was more composed. She had coped with my sorting better than father, but still warned me to keep away from 'undesirable company'._

"_I…" began Teddy. "I just wanted to let you know, your father is being pulled up in front of the Wizengamot on charges of prejudice."_

"_What?" I exclaimed. "Why didn't anybody tell me?"_

"_It was decided yesterday, Longbottom only just notified me. They have the pensive memories of every student in the school, which is more than enough evidence. I don't think they'll go to Azkaban, but there's a call to have you and your sister removed."_

_I gaped at him. "What, taken away? So I'd never have to see them again?"_

_He nodded, obviously surprised at my reaction. "What are they actually like, Nico?"_

"_The same as in the howlers. It's all 'purity of blood' crap."_

"_Have they ever hurt you?"_

"_No," I said firmly. "They've never even laid a hand on all three of us."_

"_Three?"_

_I cursed under my breath. "Yeah, me, my brother and my sister,"_

"_Your brother?" he shook his head. "Neville didn't mention a brother."_

"_Dad's going to kill me," I sighed. "He'll think I reported him."_

_Teddy didn't deny it._

"Goal!"

It was now early October, and I had learnt a new sport. They called it football, and I was in the process of proving myself a natural. I did a quick victory run down the pitch while the other boys laughed. It was only a stupid game between ourselves, but I treated it as though it were a cup match. I couldn't wait to be old enough to try out for the school teams. As we restarted the game, I couldn't help glancing over to where the girls were discreetly watching from the windows. I hoped Fiona had seen my goal.

After a while we trooped in to get washed for dinner. The dormitory rang with our lively banter as we knotted ties, and discarded dirty clothes onto the floor. Making a mental note to pick them up before Matron did her rounds we half ran down the stairs, chattering at the tops of our voices. I found myself falling into step with Lysander. All the boys in Park House were friends, we didn't bother with those silly feuds the girls had, but Lysander was my best friend. We filed into the dining room, and I immediately claimed the seat opposite Fiona, who blushed at her best friend's giggles.

"Hello boys," she said. "Shut _up_ Mary," she hissed at the brunette, who just giggled even more.

"So," I said, spearing a piece of sausage. "First trip into town on Saturday, you looking forward to it?"

"I guess," she shrugged. "Father and I stayed there when we came to view the school, it's a bit small, and it's ancient. Still, it will be good to get off sight."

We continued to make small talk in this manner until the end of the meal, when we began to meander back to the dormitory.

"I was wondering…" said Fiona, blushing slightly. "I need some help with that maths prep, and…"

"Say no more, maths genius James is on the case."

She smiled, leaving me momentarily speechless.

"Mr Valente,"

I started and whipped around, almost knocking Mr Prewett off his feet.

"Watch it!" he snapped. "I need you to come with me, there is a matter we need to discuss."

I nodded. "I'll help you later," I told Fiona. She smiled sadly, but carried on with the others. I allowed myself to be taken to the headmaster's office. He got straight to the point.

"Your father has lost his case."

"I see, and what's going to happen?"

"What _is_ going to happen," he corrected me. "Nothing yet, they are still deciding. Do you want to leave your parents, James?"

I hesitated, unsure of what to say. "I don't know, I mean, I do not know what I want, but I can imagine that they would be pleased to see the back of me."

"I am sure, that whatever happens, your parents will always be proud of you."

I snorted. "Yeah, you can tell that to the others, but it won't work for me. I don't have nice, understanding parents like the others do."

"I still have relatives in the wizard world," he said thoughtfully. "My grandfather was one of two brothers, and my father was an only child. After his cousins Fabian and Gideon died, he was the family's only hope of 'continuing the Prewett line'. He had three children, all boys." He paused. He seemed to be struggling to get the words out. "After my youngest brother was also declared a squib, he committed suicide. I have not told the others this," he said anxiously, avoiding my eyes. "But I would appreciate it if you kept it to yourself. I think you are the only one who would understand."

_Before I could even wonder where the time had gone, it was Halloween. This meant high spirits, and James and I had the perfect prank for the occasion. Even Teddy rolled around laughing, and Fred almost fell off the bench. In the meantime, the Slytherins could do nothing but fume silently as their hair turned pumpkin orange, and grew past their waists. The feast was spectacular, as promised, and finished with a display by the ghosts. We ate and talked and laughed, and basically just had a good time._

_Of course, after the official celebration, the Gryffindors had their own party, but that was mostly for the older students, the ones that were old enough to like firewhiskey anyway. The others went to bed after a little while, but I stayed by the fire, curled up with a book. It was then that she appeared._

"_Hi," she said. She had honey coloured hair, and rather deep brown eyes. I had seen her in class, but had never really spoken to her._

"_I'm Emma," she said shyly. "You're Nico, aren't you?"_

"_Yeah, that's me."_

_There was an awkward pause._

"_Anyway, I've got to go, goodnight," she said hurriedly, and darted away before I could say anything else._

_How odd, I thought, turning over the page. That was the first time I realised that I didn't understand girls._


End file.
